The National Academies will launch “Graduate STEM Education for the 21st Century” today, which you can view remotely via webcast, at 1.30pm EST. This consensus study re-visits a 20-year old report on the state of science, technology, engineering and mathematics graduate education in the United States. The study is a comprehensive look at the U.S. graduate education system, identifying policies, programs, and practices that could better meet the diverse education and career needs of graduate students in the coming years. Those present for discussion include: Alan Leshner (chair of the study), Chief Executive Officer Emeritus, AAAS Mary Sue Coleman, President, Association of American Universities (AAU) Kenneth Gibbs, Jr., Program Director, National Institute of General Medical Sciences Suzanne Ortega, President, Council of Graduate Schools Kate Stoll, Senior Policy Advisor, MIT Washington Keith Yamamoto, Vice Chancellor for Science Policy & Strategy, Vice Dean for Research, School of Medicine, Professor of Cellular & Molecular Pharmacology, University of California, San Francisco You can view additional details about this project here at the National Academies website and you can view the live webcast here....

On April 12th, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine report “Breaking Through” will be released and publicly discussed in DC and over livestream at 1.30pm EST. FoR President Jessica Polka and ED Gary McDowell, and FoR advisory board member Paula Stephan, were all on the committee. The study was Congressionally mandated under the 21st Century Cures Act. Register here for the meeting and webcast. The study, which “examines the policy and programmatic steps that the nation can undertake to ensure the successful launch and sustainment of careers among the next generation of researchers in the biomedical and behavioral sciences, including the full range of health sciences supported by the NIH” includes: • An evaluation of the barriers that prospective researchers encounter as they transition to independent research careers; • An evaluation of the impact of federal policies and budgets, including federal agency policies and procedures regarding research grant awards, on opportunities for prospective researchers to successfully transition into independent research careers and to secure their all-important first and second major research grants; • An evaluation of the extent to which employers (industry, government agencies and labs, academic institutions, and others) can facilitate smooth transitions for early career researchers into independent research careers. You can see additional information about the study, including released responses to the call for public information, and the reports on the systems in Canada, China, the EU, the UK and Singapore here. In addition, Gary McDowell will be giving the postdoc seminar at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, MI on April 12th at noon, where the contents of the report will also be discussed....

Scientists today are increasingly needed in advocacy and policy efforts, as well as conducting research, securing funding, and teaching classes, and we need to ensure that we foster all of this in the next generation of scientists. How can you ensure that you develop a working mentor-mentee relationship in the sciences, to further academic, advocacy and policy goals? Following on from our mentoring tweetchat and meeting at College Park (stay tuned for our write-up of the event), in collaboration with The Science Network at the Union of Concerned Scientists we invite you to a webinar featuring mentor/mentee pair Sandra Schmid and Ashley Lakoduk from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center who will offer strategies and resources that are currently available to mentors. Mentoring: Catalyzing the Next Generation of Scientists Date: Thursday, October 12 Time: 2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. EDT / 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. PDT Register for the Webinar Today...

Future of Research is sponsoring a webinar with Union of Concerned Scientists on Thursday August 31st, 2:00-3:00 p.m. EDT, where you can learn strategies for building support for scientist engagement with the public and decision-makers. You can register for the webinar HERE. One of the ways we can improve the scientific enterprise is to empower scientists to become more engaged with the public or other stakeholders. However, currently there are still few incentives and rewards in academia for scientists to engage with the public, as well as a lack of training for them in this area. This webinar will showcase individuals who have been part of this movement, and who will discuss strategies for bringing about those changes in the scientific enterprise. Speakers will also provide recommendations for others who are eager to engage with various stakeholders within their work. Speakers include: Elyse Aurbach-Pruitt, co-founder and co-director, RELATE (Researchers Expanding Lay-Audience Teaching and Engagement) Nalini Nadkarni and Caitlin Weber, STEM Ambassador Program (STEMAP) Dan Pomeroy, managing director and senior policy advisor, International Policy Lab, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Register for the webinar HERE...